Once more into the fire, my fellow readers. :D Yet some more Zutara friendship for ya'll, which I hope you all will enjoy. Anyways, please enjoy and review! :D

NOTE: The bold AND italic words (example) are representing Katara's inner self. It's like a tiny voice in the back of her head that she's not aware of, but sometimes she will be able to hear it. It's kind of like what her heart is trying to say to her, but most of the time her hatred towards Zuko drowns it out.

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Avatar: The Last Airbender. The show and its characters belong to Mike and Bryan, the brillant geniuses behind one of the greatest cartoon shows in the history of cartoons. Their work is legendary, and I salute them for it.

Tea Time with Zuzu

"Come on, Aang. I'm waiting for you."

"I don't know if I can do this, Katara. I've never done anything like this before."

"Yes you can. It's not that hard."

"Are you kidding? This is a hundred times harder than when I first tried to Earthbend!"

"But this isn't Earthbending. This is something totally different."

"I can see that, Katara! I seriously don't think I can do this!"

"Remember when we were back at the South Pole and we saw the Fire Nation ship that was trapped in ice?"

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with what's happening now?"

"You told me that I had to let go of fear. You have to do the same thing here. Just take a deep breath, and then take the final plunge."

…

"All right, Katara…I'm going in."

"Do it, Aang!"

"YAAAAHHHH!"

SPLASH!

Katara, who was in her white bindings, childishly laughed as she covered her head with her arms, letting the water part around her as it fell on her. She smiled as she lowered her arms, watching Aang surface from the large ripples emanating from his landing spot. She cheerfully applauded as she proudly said, "That was perfect! You were able to slow your fall using the water!"

Aang, who was bare except for his black shorts, cheerily laughed and said, "I don't know why I was so afraid. It was almost like flying!"

Katara stopped clapping as she gestured behind Aang and said, "No kidding. You threw yourself off of a cliff, after all." The two benders were training in the cove near the beach of Zuko's vacation home, and the rocky cliffs around the cove allowed for Katara to teach Aang this new Waterbending technique, which involved him whipping his arms around in order to have the water snatch him and slow his perilous fall.

"Can we do that again?" Aang excitedly asked, child-like joy sparkling in his stormy eyes.

Katara chuckled as she put a hand on her hip and said, "I don't see why not."

"Flameo!" happily exclaimed Aang as he triumphantly punched a fist into the air. With a burst of air, he propelled himself up the cliff side until he gently touched down on the top. "Are you watching, Katara?" he called out to his Waterbending teacher.

"How can I not be?" she playfully called back, brightly smiling at her pupil. "Your arrows make you stand out."

"Gee, when did you notice?" asked Aang in a lightly sarcastic tone, one that told Katara that he was only joking. He took ten steps backwards, briefly going out of Katara's sight as he went behind the rocks. Suddenly, there was a burst of air as Aang propelled himself off the cliff with a boisterous, "WAHOOOOOO!"

His Airbending rocketed him nearly fifty feet outside the cove, and the Avatar frenziedly whipped his arms around. The water rose up to meet him, catching the boy and slowly collapsing under his weight. Aang immediately surfaced and shouted, "That was awesome! Did you see me, Katara?"

"You bet I did!" she shouted back to him, watching as he swam back towards her using his Waterbending, gliding over the waves like a Tiger-Shark. "That was even better than last time!"

Aang certainly seems to be enjoying himself.

How can he not be? He loves learning new things.

What about the whole 'throwing himself off of a cliff for the first time and hoping not to die' thing?

That's a bit different than when he jumped off of Appa. At least he had his glider then, and he probably could have flown without it anyway. He is an Airbender, after all.

True, but I think he likes seeing you in your bindings.

Oh for La's sake, will you shut up about that?

All I'm saying is that he seems a little more attentive than usual, and it always happens when you two do Waterbending training.

He really likes Waterbending since it's so close in style to his native element. That has nothing to do with me.

I'm sure it doesn't.

ARGH!

"Katara?" confusedly said Aang, bringing the Waterbender back to reality. "Are you okay?" he worriedly asked, concern filling up his eyes to the brim.

"Yeah," replied Katara as she nodded her head, feeling the waves lap at her waist. She raised an eyebrow as she asked, "Why wouldn't I be okay?"

"You looked like you were staring off into space," replied Aang, frowning slightly with uneasiness and anxiety.

Katara assuredly smiled at Aang and said, "I was just thinking of something." She waved her hand dismissively as she added, "Nothing important really." Aang let a small smile creep onto his face, glad that nothing was wrong. "I'm going to go back to the house," said Katara, tossing a stray strand of hair over her shoulder. "I want you to practice this move I taught for at least another half-hour."

"Yes, Sifu Katara," obediently said Aang as he cupped a fist in his hand, respectfully bowing to his teacher.

Katara made the same gesture to her pupil, smiling the whole time. Master and student came out of their bow, admirably smiling at one another. "How about a hug before I go?" she cheerfully asked, holding her arms out in an offering. Both of them chuckled as they embraced one another, feeling their bond of friendship flow between them. Katara patted his shoulder as they came out of their embrace, and as she dropped her hand down Aang shot up in a burst of Airbending, flying towards the cliff once more, leaving his teacher behind.

"I'll wait until you're gone to keep going with my training," called Aang from the cliff, causing her to look at him.

"Good idea," she cheerily called back, and she saw a smile come to Aang's face. She waded her way out of the waves and onto the beach, bending the water out of her bindings and back into the sea. She slipped on her Water Tribe outfit as Aang continued to launch himself off the cliff, bending the waves below to catch him before he slammed into the water. She adjusted her betrothal necklace to be sure that it was secure, and she smiled when her task was accomplished.

I don't think Mom could have ever dreamed that I would be the Avatar's Waterbending teacher.

She would be proud of you no matter how you turned out, but you're right; she would be immensely proud of you right now.

Katara turned her attention to walking as she went through the craggy pass to the beach, making her way up the rocky path towards the vacation home. Behind her, she could hear Aang continue to practice his new technique, sending roaring waves crashing against the sandy beach with each splash-down he made. Katara smiled to herself as she listened to this, letting her feet carry her back to the house of their own free-will.

Soon the sounds of the beach were far behind, and the vacation home was in sight. She could see Toph reclined against the front steps of the home, dressed in her Fire Nation outfit. Appa was resting nearby, his body almost neatly concealed by bushes. The blind Earthbender smirked as Katara approached and smugly said, "Twinkle Toes wore you out, huh?"

Katara groaned in annoyance as her face brightly flushed red, eliciting a merry chuckle from Toph. "I thought you said that you would stop teasing me about that," she firmly said, taking a seat next to Toph.

"No need to get defensive, Sugar Queen," jokingly said Toph, blowing an annoying black bang out of her face. "I was talking about your splashing around on the beach, not about that other thing."

"Really?" incredulously asked Katara with a skeptically cocked eyebrow.

"Really," truthfully replied Toph with a nod of her head, her pale green irises staring up at the wild blue yonder above. "Earthbenders never back down on their promises, especially those made to those closest to them." She tilted her head towards Katara and added, "You've become like a sister to me and, since you're going through this thing with Aang, I'm going to help you however I can."

Katara couldn't contain her smile as she gratefully said, "I really appreciate that, Toph." Her voice took on a hint of guiltiness as she apologetically said, "I'm sorry for getting so bitter with you."

"Bah, don't worry about it," Toph nonchalantly said as she waved her hand in indifference. "At least you're not all over Aang like Sokka is with Suki."

"What do you mean?" uneasily asked Katara, afraid of where this could be leading.

"Snoozles spends pretty much his entire day with Fan Girl," Toph replied as her eyes became half-lidded, her irises full of sleepiness. "They do pretty much everything: hold hands, talk sweet-talk to each other, make out so much that their faces are practically attached at the lips-"

"I get it," interjected Katara as she rolled her eyes.

Toph shrugged her shoulders as she said, "All I'm saying is that you at least get away from Aang and let him do his own thing, whether it's bending practice or hanging out with the others."

"Speaking of others," thoughtfully said Katara as she looked around, "where in the world is Zuko? The last time I saw him was this morning during his Firebending training with Aang."

Toph jerked a casual thumb towards the entrance of the house as she said, "Sparky's in the kitchen." Dropping her thumb, she added, "As for Sokka and Suki, they're making out in his room."

"Ugh," grossly said Katara as she stuck her tongue out in disgust, shuddering at the thought of her brother and his girlfriend swapping spit. As she got up, she looked down at Toph and said, "I'm going to hang out with Zuko for a while. If my brother and Suki try to do anything more than making out, will you stop them?"

Toph deviously smiled as she slyly said, "An opportunity to mess with Snoozles and his girlfriend…now that sounds like fun." She gave Katara an affirmative salute as she proudly said, "You can count on me, Katara."

Katara mischievously smiled as she said, "Thanks for having my back, Blind Bandit."

"No problem," snootily replied Toph with a wily smirk. She held up a fist to the Waterbender and said, "Pound it, sister."

"You know it, sister," amiably said Katara, bumping her tan fist into the blind Earthbender's pale fist.

The two girls dropped their fists down as Toph said, "Now get going, Shugs. I'll be on Sokka-Suki duty until further notice." As Katara turned to leave, the petite girl added, "I can do anything I want to them, right?"

"Get creative," was Katara's simple reply as she walked towards the entrance of the house, the very thought of what Toph could do to mess with Sokka and Suki brining a smile to her face.

"Sweet," devilishly said Toph from behind her, scheming and tricky pleasure coating her voice.

Katara entered through the front door of the house, gently closing it behind her. A sweet smell wafted towards her, completely filling her nostrils with a honeyed fragrance that made her heart race with pleasure.

What is that heavenly smell?

Why don't you follow your nose?

Do you ever let me have any space?

Nope.

Wonderful.

Katara made her way down the hallway, the intoxicating aroma drawing her ever closer to the source. About halfway down the hall, she saw an open doorway to her left. She peeked around it to see Zuko standing near the stove, sipping a tea cup as he stood over the heating tea pot. "You see, my dear nephew," sagely said Zuko in a gravelly voice as he lowered his tea cup from his mouth, "there are very few good things in life: health, happiness, comfort, and tea." He wisely held up a finger as he added, "I do believe that if it weren't for tea, we as a race would have been brought down to be nothing but mindless savages. Tea is truly the drink of civilized men, bringing a great sense of refinement to the heart."

Katara raised an eyebrow at this strange sight, though something about it caused her to smile with amusement.

I think he's imitating his Uncle. That's hilarious!

"What do you mean you don't want to play the Tsungi horn?" asked Zuko to no one, still pulling off his best 'Iroh' impersonation. "I thought you loved playing that instrument!"

Katara couldn't take it anymore; she had been holding back a snicker but was unable to do so as soon as Zuko had said his last line. Her throat tingled with amusement as her hearty snicker escaped, a sound that pierced the quiet air after Zuko's monologue. She immediately stopped snickering when she saw Zuko's head snap towards her, his eyes wide with surprise and his face flushed red with embarrassment. The two teenagers stared at each other for a full minute without moving, both afraid of making the first move.

Finally, Zuko nervously asked, "How…how long were you standing there listening to me?"

Katara fully stepped into the open doorway as she casually replied, "Only about a minute." She smirked as she asked, "And how long were you doing that impersonation of your Uncle?"

Zuko timidly glanced off to his left, anxiously fiddling with the now-empty tea cup in his hands. "About ten minutes…" he quietly replied, his voice heavy with awkwardness. Katara leaned against the doorframe as she amusedly chuckled, intensifying the humiliating blush on Zuko's face.

This boy is so strange sometimes.

You said it, girl. Then again, Aang can be strange too.

Must you compare everything to him?

Only until you admit that you love him like you know you do but are too stubborn to admit!

Gesturing to Zuko, she cheerily asked, "Do you mind if join you for tea?" Zuko kept his eyes averted as he nodded his reply, and the Waterbender stepped into the kitchen. She walked up to the tea pot, which she could tell was made out of tin, and took in the fragrant scent of the wonderful brew. She hummed with pleasure as the smell filled her nose, and she turned her heads towards Zuko as she curiously asked, "What kind of tea is it?"

"Jasmine," quickly replied Zuko, still toying with the empty cup in his hand. Before Katara could ask, he opened a drawer in the kitchen counter and pulled out another tea cup. He kept looking off to his left as he handed the cup to her, saying, "Here's a cup for you."

"Thanks," she sunnily said, smoothly taking the porcelain cup from the Firebender's trembling fingers. She set the cup down on the counter and picked up the tea pot, gently pouring the warm liquid into the cup. "Do you like this kind of tea?" she inquisitively asked as she set the tea pot back down and picked up her cup, taking a sip of the sweet liquid as she turned towards Zuko.

"Mmhmm," he hastily replied with a mutter, his pale cheeks still tinged with a furious blush.

"Are all of your answers going to contain either one word or just a mutter?" she teasingly asked as she brought the cup down from her mouth, feeling her insides turn to pure gold from the Jasmine tea.

"Probably," he said with a small smile, his blush going away slightly.

Talkative guy, isn't he?

He can be when he wants to be.

After a moment of thoughtful silence, Zuko turned his eyes back to Katara as she was drinking and asked, "So what were you doing down at the beach with Aang?"

Katara lowered her cup as she said, "I was showing him a Waterbending technique that involved using water to soften his fall from a high height, like if he fell off a cliff or something."

Zuko raised his good eyebrow as he poured himself a new cup of tea and skeptically asked, "What good is that going to do against my father?"

The Firebender set down the tea pot as Katara shrugged her shoulders and replied, "You never know when he might need something like that."

"What Aang needs is a way to defeat my father so he can finally end this war," firmly said Zuko as he turned to Katara, tea cup in hand. "One Waterbending trick isn't going to be enough to take down the Fire Lord."

"It's just a skill I thought he would need," defensively said Katara. "And he's going to need all the help he can get so that he can defeat your father."

"That is true," astutely agreed Zuko, taking a sip of his tea.

"GAAAHHHH!" screamed a frightened voice, and both teenagers turned to see where the sound was coming from. They both looked out into the hallway to see Sokka and Suki sprawled outside of the Water Tribe warrior's door, buried up to their heads in sand. "Where did all this sand come from?" shouted Sokka, trying hard to snort the gritty grains out of his nose.

"How should I know?" asked Suki as she spat sand out of her mouth, sounding a little peeved by the sudden onslaught of the beach powder.

Katara and Zuko both went back into the kitchen and stood on opposite sides of the doorway as the Firebender asked, "What in Agni was all that about?"

"Toph doing her job," wistfully replied Katara, letting a mischievous smile come across her face. Seeing the perplexed look on Zuko's face, she added, "I asked Toph to interfere in case Sokka and Suki tried to do anything more than making out."

"And you gave her permission to do that?" asked Zuko in amazement, surprise thick in his voice.

"Pretty much," she nonchalantly replied Katara, and a sudden thought crossed her mind. "So what's he like?" she unexpectedly asked, eliciting a confused look from the Firebender.

"Who?"

"Your Uncle Iroh," replied Katara, brushing away a loose strand of hair that had fallen over her face. "I've only seen him a few times, and I never really got the chance to know him after he let Aang and I escape from the Catacombs."

Zuko leaned against the wall as a sad smile came over his face, his amber eyes sparkling with memories of the past as he looked down at his tea cup. After a while, he said, "He's like the kind and wise old man who always makes you smile and feel embarrassed to be around him at the same time."

"Is that supposed to be a good thing?" jokingly asked Katara as she leaned her shoulder against the wall, still holding her tea cup.

"Yeah," softly said Zuko, his lips still contorted into a pleasant smile. "He always had a proverb for everything, and he always had a joke in stored in that crazy mind of his." His smile faded as he sadly added, "He's been like a father to me for all this time, always wanting me to find happiness in my life." His shaggy hair draped over his eyes as he muttered, "But in the Catacombs…I messed up…"

"You don't need to beat yourself up about that anymore," sympathetically said Katara, causing Zuko to look up at her with helpless eyes. "I've forgiven you for that, and Aang certainly doesn't hold a grudge against you for it."

"I haven't forgiven myself for what happened down there," glumly retorted Zuko, his face heavy with regret. He glanced to his right as he miserably added, "And I don't know if Uncle could ever forgive me for betraying him like that." He tiredly sighed as he said, "I don't even know where he is now."

"What happened to him after Ba Sing Se?" curiously asked Katara, her interest peeked by this unknown detail.

Without looking at her, he heavily said, "He was captured by Azula and the Dai Li for his treason against the Fire Nation, and he was brought back home as a disgraced prisoner. He was kept in the prison tower just outside of the Capital City, close enough to keep an eye on him and far enough away that he wouldn't embarrass my father again." Looking back at her, he added, "But somehow he managed to escape during the Day of Black Sun, probably during the eclipse itself."

"How did he manage to do that?" asked Katara with a raised eyebrow.

"I don't know," honestly replied Zuko. "He tore apart the bars with his bare hands, and from what one of the guards told me he was like a one-man army."

"That's pretty impressive," admirably said Katara, though the sad light in Zuko's eyes refused to subside.

"What does it matter?" hopelessly asked Zuko. "He's gone, and I have no idea where he is."

I've got to do something nice for him so that he doesn't feel so bad about his Uncle.

Good idea! Aren't you glad you're friends with him now?

Of course I am. I care enough about him to help him feel better when he's feeling down.

"How about a toast?" asked Katara, holding her tea cup up.

"For what?" asked Zuko, not getting what Katara was trying to say. "What could there possibly be that's worth celebrating?"

"The hope that you'll be reunited with your Uncle," earnestly replied Katara, "and that he'll forgive you for your past mistakes." Zuko seemed a bit taken aback by her proposal, but soon a smile spread across his lips.

"I'll drink to that," he cheerfully said as he raised his cup up in the toast.

"To your Uncle," proposed Katara, her eyes sparkling with a friendly light.

"To the greatest Uncle in the world, a man who loves Pai Sho and tea," happily replied Zuko, clinking his cup against Katara's cup. The two teenagers chuckled as they raised their cups up to their mouths, taking in an all-enveloping sip of jovial friendship.